Sectional member



June 30, 1953 r. OLSZEWSKI 2,643,745

SECTIONAL MEMBER Filed April 7, 1950 ATTORNEY Patented June 30, i1 953 SEG-TIONAL 'Ilhaddeus Qlszewsk Mamaroneck, NA Application April 7;, 1950, SerialNo. 154,471

(CL. m s/4.)

l-l- Claims.

and particularly to that. type adapted tobe'ass'embled without, fastening means. other than the parts of the structural members themselves to form a unit of any desiredlength.

The invention contemplates, the provision of substantially identical interchangeable interlocking sectional members adapted to. be assembled at high speed and at. one point under highly ad-. verse conditions such as fire, flood, military bombardment. and the like. to form an elongated projectable unit reaching otherwise inaccessible points with great rapidity as when the assembled unit is designed for use as a bridge, ladder, post, tower, escape chute, emergency brace or the like.

The invention further contemplates the pro vision of a knock-down structural unit compris-- mg a number of sectional members designed to be assembled with a minimum of labor and op tional-ly to be permanently pivoted together at given longitudinally spaced staggered points for winding up on suitable reels in acompact manner, whereby the unit may be reassembled and extended rapidly by merely rotating the reels, and may be lengthened at any time by the mereaddition of similar sectional members thereto, and readily transported on disassembl y from place-to place.

The invention further contemplates the provision of a composite sufiiciently rigid structure to take the stresses to which it may be subjected and suitable for numerous uses to which an elongated or widened unit may be required especially in emergencies, and designed to be disassembled compactly into a small storage space and rapidly assembled by unskilled labor without the need for tools or fastening devices.

The invention furthercontemplates the provision of a knock-down orcollapsiblestructure composed of sections adapted to be inexpensivelyfabricated and well suited for use in toy structural or building sets.

The invention further contemplates the provision of a sectional prefabricated member of; any desired proportions in a wide range. so shaped that it may quickly and easily be interlocked with other sectional members substantially identical therewith and identical with each other by simply rotating the successive members about successive pivots into the operative interlocked positions there-oi and without the necessity for the insertion, handling or use of fastening elements oi) any type.

The invention further contemplates the provision in such sectional member of suitable transversely extending" projections separated: by re cesses, a group of successive side walls of which are. arcuate about one: center and: the. remaining side walls of which are arcuate. about. another center, the centers beingin staggered relation, wherebyrotary, transverse and longitudinal movements of themember relatively to. both centers at one time becomes impossible with the re-.. sult. that when a member is. assembled with others and locked against. lateral displacement, theasq sembly forms a. rigid structure adapted to be dis: assembled progressively by the. individual manip ulation of successive members about. successive centers only and not. in any other manner.

The invention further contemplates the pro-. vision of cooperative auxiliary projections and re.-.-. cesses in each of the sectional members designed to enter and to receive respectively corresponding auxiliary recesses and projections in the-main projections and recesses of the adjacent sec tional member, thereby to takelateral stresses put upon the assembled members and to prevent lateral displacement of the members within the I thus assembled unit. I

The invention further contemplates the provision of. arcuate side wall surfaces on the transversely extending alternating projections and recesses thereby enabling the member to be formed with relative accuracy, said side wall surfaces fittingand sliding smoothly on the corresponding surfaces of adjacent members when the projections are inserted into the recesses therefor and rotated for assembly or disassembly, the accurate Fig.1 is, a diagrammatic elevational viewof;

two transversely adjacent rows ofsectional members pivoted together and wound up on reels, showing the rows; partway unwound and interlocked to extend the resulting rigid structure from the reels. 7

Fig. 2 is a, fragmentary front elevational view; of ar of th inter o k d and assem e s aw ture.

3 a si e. elevational ew i e structurel e hi k ess ein shown as a sma l ira ion of; the Width- E si is tr ut e eva ionel View of se eral: seq o al. mem ers, s m ar to Fig. 1., show n the manner o ass mbling t e member progr ssi e y Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the secwhich follows and tional members showing the thickness thereof as somewhat greater than the maximum width of the member and showing a pivot hole at each of the ends thereof.

Fig. 6 is a front elevational View of a modified form of the member showing projecting tenons and mortises therein extending partway through the thickness of the member.

Fig. 7 is a side elevational view thereof.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view similar to Fig. 5, of a modified form of the sectional member but of greater thickness and showing another form of the end connecting joint between the members.

In the practical embodiment of the invention shown by way of example and referring to Fig. 1, it will be seen that most of the sectional members are identical or substantially identical with each other except at the endwhere a member of half length is preferred. One row of members as ill on one side of. the assembled unit H is in obverse or turned over relation to the other row of members l2 on the other side of the unit. The two rows are also shifted or staggered longitudinally about half the length of one member to arrange the end of a member I!) at about the middle 'of a member I 2 and to permit the progressive assembly and disassembly soon to be described.

In the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 and 5, means are provided for pivotally securing together the adjacent ends of the members in each row in overlapped relation, thereby to enable the rows to be assembled with great rapidity as well as wound up on separate reels as H? and I4 respectively when the unit H is disassembled and the reels and members compactly stored for use in emergencies or until needed. As a suggested manner of using the rows of members and the reels, the reels may obviously be mounted revolubly on or in the body of a suitable vehicle such as a fire truck, tractor or the like with the rolled up rows of members ready for transportation to the point neededat which pointthe reels are rotated in the directions of the arrows of Fig. 1 and the rows interlocked as shown for the desired length to form the extensible structural unit. Many uses forsuch unit will be evident to those skilled in the art. especially with duplications or additions such as rungs for ladders, braces for towers, floors for bridges and thelike, and'need not be further described nor illustrated. Suff ce it to say that where a, collapsible and extensible unit of extraordinary length is required, the members at the extreme forward end of the unit may be relatively light and narrow while those at the rear or base would be wider and thicker for purposes. of strength. The dimensions of the members may be designed to give maximum strength with economy of weight and material in a manner well understood. It should be noted that it may be desirable to provide guides as l5, IE to engage the opposite surfaces of the unit for temporary support purposes as the unit is assembled and disassembled.

As has been indicated, the overall dimensions of the members It! or l2 may be varied almost indefinitely in a wide range depending on the purpose for which the assembled unit is to be used. In order to avoid confusion herein in the discussion of dimensions, the distance between great the distance may be, as when the unit is used for a high long fence or wal The dista between the end surfaces 28 of the projections and the unmutilated edge 2| will be called the width and the distance between the rounded end 22 and the arcuate end 23 will be called the length. The depth of the recesses or the length of the projections may be any part of the Width of the member but preferably are made half of said width.

A number of projections 24, 25 and 26 are formed in the edge of the member, the projections 24 and 25 being separated by the recess 21 and the projections 25 and 26 by the recess 28.

The end recess 29 is arranged beyond and above the projection 24 as viewed in Figs. 5 and 8. Each of the projections extends preferably throughout the entire thickness of the member and through a selected portion of the width of the member, said portion being one half as illustrated. leaving an unmutilated bar 30 of the remaining half width beyond the projections and of less than the overall length of the member. That is', the bar 30 terminates above the lowermost end 23 of the projection 26 to provide a recess for the reception of the uppermost part of the bar 36 of the next succeeding longitudinally adjacent member.

7 The shapes of the side wall surfaces of the projections and recesses are important features of the invention, making it possible for the projections of one member to look into the recesses of two transversely adjacent members. As best seen in Fig. 4, both side wall surfaces 3! and 32 of the projection 24, as well as one side wall surface of the projection 25 such as the surface 33 are cylindrical surfaces arcuate and concentric about the center point 34 near the upper end of the members l2 or 18 as a center. Said point 34 in the member I2 is preferably located at about the center of the half lap tenon 35 arranged transversely of and at the upper part of the solid part 30 and which enters a corr sponding cut-out extending half way through the thickness of the lower end part 38 of the next longitudinally adjacent member in the same row, said part 36 being arranged at the upperpart of and alongside the projection 26. The parts 35 and 36 are therefore of the same thickness and width as seen in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 and together are of the overall thickness of the member. The upper end of the part 35 is rounded in a hemicylinder topermit-rotation of the member l2 about the pivot 34 through an angle of at least 90, while only one corner as 3'! of the part 36 need be rounded. Suitable pivot pins as 38 may pass through the parts 35 and 36 at the respective pivots 34 and M thereof as shown in Fig; 1, but such pins are needed only when the members of each row are tied together at their overlapped ends to permit winding of the rows on reels or in rolls. The curvatures of the surfaces 3|, 32 and 33 are shown in Fig. 4 by the radii R1 which is the radius of the surface 33, the radius R2 for the surface 32 and the radius R3 for the surface 3 I. The remaining side wall surfaces 39, 40 and 23 of the projections 25 and 26 are concentric about a different center. Such center is the pivot or center 34a of the transversely adjacent member 10 in the case of the member 12 or the center 34 in the case of the member [0. Consequently, the consecutive center points of the members in the row are in staggered relation, the point 34a being outside of the member I2 and about half way between the centers 34 of consecutive members l2.

When the centers 34 and 34a are brought into coincidence as by placing the 'tenon 35 of the member It to be locked in place upon the part 36 of the last member l2 already in position in the row, and the last member is then swung in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. i, the projection enters the recess 29 of the transversely adjacent member ill, the surfaces 3! and 32 of the member l2 sliding respectively on the sur faces 39 and Gi of the member it. At the same time, the projection 26 of the member it enters the recess 27 of the transversely adjacent memher, the surface 23 of the member if: sliding on the surface 33 ofthe member iii. Consequently, the radius of curvature of the surfaces 23 and 33 are the same, namely R1, said surfaces becomin coincident on the assembly of the members. Also the radius R2 is the same for the surfaces and Alt, and the radius R3 is the same for the' surfaces 32 and 39. Once the recesses in each member have been filled with projections from the two transversely adjacent members, the rows cannot be separated at said member by any lon gitudinal, transverse or combination movement. Cibviously, the inclined or tapered surfaces 33 and 39 diverging away from each other toward the surfaces 253 act as a dovetail preventing relative movement transversely. Longitudinal movement is prevented by the engagement of the alternating projections of the" members of one row with the members of the other row. Lateral movement of the rows or members relatively to each other is also prevented by the engagement of the adjacent faces of the end parts 35 and 36. However, the parts may be disassembled deliberately only by rotation of the member last rotated into place in the proper direction In Fig. 4, this would be counterclockwise for the member l2 clockwise for the member Ell. Only one member at a time can be disengaged from the others, so that the disassembly must be progressive, beginning with the last assembled member.

When assembled, the thickness of the unit is the same as that of the member, the width or" the member i a major fraction of the width of the unit and the length of the member is a fraction of the length of the unit. The half lap joints at the ends of the members are usually not enough to make the unit sufliciently rigid. Means have therefore been provided for taking the lateral stresses on the members and for preventing any lost motion or backlash laterally. Said means takes the form of auxiliary projections d2, 53, it at and projecting transversely fromthe bottom surfaces of the respective recesses in position to enter corresponding holes or auxiliary recesses 45, iii and t? respectively in the end'surfaces 29 0f the projections. The auxiliary projections 42 :23 are substantially concentric about the point 3 3 and the projection is is concentric about the point 340: of the transversely adjacent member. The projection d2 enters the recess 45 of an adjacent member, the projection it enters the recess 45 and the projection 34 enters the recess 4?. The auxiliary recesses may have the corresponding curvature if desired, but for purposes of economy in manufacture, they are made straight and slightly wider vertically than the vertical width or thickness of the auxiliary projections as viewed in Figs. 2, 4 and 5. The thick-- nesses oi the auxiliary projections and recesses are substantially the same, however, to maintain a tight lit and to prevent relative lateral movement of the parts. Said projections and recesses may have any convenient length but are preferably relatively short for the reason that they? are subjected usually to shearing stresses only.

For additionalstrength and for ease of assem bly, the end joints of the members may take the form of the tongue and groove joint shown in Fig. 8 instead'of the half lap! joint above described. The part 35 in that case is replaced by the parts 51!, 5t separated by thegroove d2 receiving the corresponding tongue 53 at the lower end of the next consecutive member of the row.

In the modified form shown in Figs; 6 and 7,

the auxiliary projections take the form of tenons 55, 56 and 57 arranged in the recesses 29, 27 and Z8 respectively in the same manner as the corresponding auxiliary projections i'z, c3 and as of Figs. 2, a and 5. The recesses 58.,- EQ and Ed are in the form of mortises in the. ends of the main projections 24, 25. and 26 respectively. In view of the stag ered relation of the'assembled members, the tenon 55 enters the mortise 59 of an adj cent member, the tenon 56 enters a mortise 60. and the tenon 5'! enters a-mcrtise 58 in the same manner as described in connection with the auxiliary projections and recesses 42 to 47. The mortises being preferably slightly wider than the tenons, they need not be made with curved side edges.

The extreme free extensible end of the unit may be finished in. any suitable manner so that one row of membersdoes not project materially beyond the. other, and a rigid end portion is provided. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, this is done by using the lower half only of amember I? at the end of one row, terminating said half end mem ber at about the part 35 of the adjacent member 10 and omitting the recesses above the projection 25. However, a suitable cut-out is made in thesolid unrecessed part above the projection 25 to receive the uppermost joint part 3'5 of the adjacent member. When the members are hand assembled, the other end of either row may be similarly finished off by a similar half member in a manner which will nowbe obvious.

It will be seen that the present invention provides a sectional member of peculiar shape designed to be made in any requireddimensions large or small, or in any relative proportions of length, width and-thicknessand with any desired number of projectionsand recesses which interlock with those of identical members arranged alongside or transversely by progressive rotary assembly, that the unit formed by such assembly has many uses and may be quickly and easily collapsed and as quickly reassembled without the need for fasteners or skilled labor, that the unit maybe easily transported a collapsed or roll wound state to any desired point and there extended to the desired length, that by the addition of suitable parts the unit may be combined with one or more similar units to form various knock-down structures in emergencies or for military purposes and that I have provided a device well designed to meet the requirements.

to form said unit devoid of extraneous fastening means, said member having a transverse cut-out therein at one end thereof extending partway through the thickness ofthe member, a part at the other end shaped to fit the cutout and adapted to enter the cut-out of an adjacent similar member and three spaced in clined projections extending inwardly and transversely from one edge of the member toward the opposite edge and laterally completely through the thickness of the member, said projections being separated by recesses, two consecutive side wall surfaces of a first projection and the succeeding side wall surface of the succeeding second projection being arcuate and concentric about a point in said end part and the remaining side wall surfaces of said second projection and the remaining third projection being arcuate and concentric about a point between the cut-out and said end part and outside of the membenthe recess between the first and second projections being shaped and proportioned to receive and fit the third projection of another member of the unit and the recess between the second and third projections being shaped and proportioned to receive and fit the first projection of still another member of the unit. 7

2. The sectional member of claim 1, smaller parts of lesser length, width and thickness than the projections arranged between the projections, the projections having holes corresponding in size to the size of said smaller parts to receive similar smaller parts of a similar adjacent member.

3. In an elongated collapsible unit, a series of interlocking cooperating substantially identical interchangeable members arranged transversely of each other in longitudinal staggered relation, each of the members having a first projection arcuate about a center at the end of one member and having a second projection having one edge thereof arcuate about said center and having the other edge thereof arcuate about another center at one end of the adjacent member and intermediate the ends of said one member there being recesses between the projections of each member shaped to fit and receive frictionally and to be filled removably by projections of two others of said members throughout the areas of the recesses.

4. The unit of claim 3 and transversely extending means on each member between the projections thereof entering holes respectively in the projections of the adjacent member.

5. A set of identical members for interlocking assembly into an elongated solid unit, each of the members comprising a substantially unmutilated bar extending throughout the length, thickness and one half of the width and along one edge of the member, the thickness of each end portion of the bar being reduced to half that of the remainer of the bar, a pair of spaced apart projections extending transversely from the bar and throughout the thickness and the other half of the width of the member, the first of said projections being provided with arcuate edges centered about a center point at approximately the center of the reduced part of one end portion, the second projection having one arcuate transversely extending edge thereof concentric with said center point and having the other transversely extending edge thereof arcuate about a second center point arranged between the aforesaid projections and spaced transversely outwardly thereof, a third projection aligned longitudinally with said first and second projections and extending longitudinally beyond the other end portion of the bar, said third projection having arcuate edges centered about said second point, there being four recesses in the member, the first recess being the space between the first and second projections, the second recess being the space'between the first projection and the nearer end of the bar and alongside the bar, the third recess being the space between the second and third projections, the fourth recess being the space beyond said other end portion of the bar and in longitudinal alignment with the bar and alongside the third projection, the first projection of the first member of the set being removably and frictionally fitted into and filling the third recess of a second member of the set, the first projection of a second member being similarly fitted into and filling the third recess of a third member of the set, the second projection of the second member being longitudinally aligned with the third projection of the third member and both said last mentioned projections being removably and frictionally fitted into and filling and projecting longitudinally out of the second recess of the first member, the third projection of the second member being removably and frictionally fitted into and filling the first recess of the first member, said one end portion of the first member fitting into and filling the fourth recess of the third member, all of the spaces constituting the recesses in any member of the unit being completely filled by the projections of other members of the unit, the members being thereby interlocked along substantially one third of the areas of the surfaces thereof to form an interlocked unit substantially three times the width of the bar of a member, the interlocked projections and recesses forming a substantially continuous solid row devoid of unfilled spaces through the middle of the unit and through the entire thickness thereof.

6. A set of substantially identical members for an extensible and collapsible unit consisting of a plurality of such members in interlocked relation, each of the members comprising a longitudinal unmutilated bar along part of the width of the member and alternating recesses and projections alongside the bar and throughout the remaining part of the width of the member, selected projections of three members removably fitting into, being locked in and completely filling the recesses of a fourth member on the assembly of the unit, there being three differently shaped longitudinally aligned and transversely extending projections on each member and three difierently shaped aligned transversely extending recesses on each member together with an end corner recess beyond and bounded on one side by the bar and alongside and bounded on the other side by the end one of the projections, one of the projections being of the same shape and size as one of the recesses, and the side edges of said last mentioned projection being centered about a difierent point from the center of the sides of the last mentioned recess.

'7. A set of members for an extensible and collapsible unit comprising two rows of identical members, the members of one row being in obverse relation to the members of the other row but being otherwise identical and interchange- 9 able with any member of the other row, each member having alternating longitudinally aligned transversely disposed recesses and transversely disposed projections therein, the recesses of each member in either row between consecutive projections of the same member being completely fillable by selected projections of at least two consecutive adjacent members in the other row, the recesses and projections constituting the sole means locking the members together against separation in any direction in the plane of said members.

8. The set of members of claim '7, there being three projections and four recesses in each member, the first three consecutive side edges of the first two projections of each member being centered about one given point at the end part of the member and the remaining three side edges of the projections being centered about a difierent point out of longitudinal alignment with said one given point, whereby one projection is provided with one side edge centered about said one point and with another side edge centered about said different point.

9. The set of members of claim 8, the rows being capable of assembly and disassembly only by first swinging thelend member of one row about said one given point of the member, then swinging the adjacent end member of the other row about said different point for the adjacent end member thereby to disengage said remaining three side edges of the projections of the end member of one row from the recesses and projections of the adjacent member in the other row and then to disengage said first three consecutive side edges of the first two projections of the adjacent member in said other row from said remaining three side edges of the projections of the next member in said one row.

10. A sectional member for an interlocked collapsible unit composed of two rows of such members identical with each other except that the members of one row are in obverse relation to the members of the other row in the assembled unit, said member having alternating projections and recesses, the recesses being longitudinally spaced apart and extending transversely from one longitudinal outer edge of the member toward the opposite longitudinal outer edge of the member thereby to form the projections therebetween, a, first projection having a side edge centered about first a point in the end 11. In a substantially rigid elongated unit consisting of two rows of separable and substantially identical elongated members, interlocking means integral with the members for locking the members in the unit against complete separation from the row and from the unit by movement in the plane of the members except by swinging outwardly the endmost member of one row in said plane, and then swinging outwardly the next member in the other row in said plane, and alternating the swinging of consecutive members of one row with the consecutive members of the other row, said means including longitudinally spaced and transversely extending projections on each member, certain side edges of the projections being centered about a point in an adjacent member of the other row and the remaining side edges of the projections being centered about a different point at the end part of the member in which the projections are located, said different point being in transverse and longitudinal spaced relation to the first mentioned point when the members are as sembled into the unit.

THADDEUS OLSZEWSKI.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date v 799,163 Hubbard Sept. 12, 1905 1,719,661 Hott July 2, 1929 2,045,261 Clute June 23, 1936 2,481,471 Crot Sept. 6, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 169,860 Switzerland Sept. 1, 1934 310,644 Great Britain of 1929 

